The King's Prize

Chapter 2

Early one morning, before dawn had broken and while the mist was still thick on the ground, there was a loud knock on the front door. Pan was still lost in dreams, but his mother, Margette, was already preparing breakfast for the family. A slight frown shadowed her eyes as she pulled the door open a crack and peered into the dim morning. She gasped when she saw the small contingent of Hapsid Troopers crowding her front step.

These troopers were King Seronisis’ personal soldiers, feared and obeyed by all who lived on Tansa. The hulking ape-like humanoids were not only frightening in appearance—with their beady, black eyes beneath thick-set brows, skin like polished leather covering muscular torsos and powerful arms, and thickly haired buttocks and legs—but they were also creatures of primal instinct. The troopers were a class unto themselves, having been bred and raised for the sole purpose of protecting the king and carrying out his every wish, with no regard for method.

Margette pressed her lips together. The King’s Guard made her nervous and there would be no welcome from her until she had discovered the reason for their visit.

“We’ve come for your son,” grunted the sergeant, a towering wall of muscle and thick, wiry hair. “Seronisis wants him for the Royal Harem.”

Margette hardly knew what to think. The Royal Harem was legendary. It was an incredible honour to become a member of it, not only for the young man in question but also for his entire family. Selection for the Harem was notoriously rigorous. A boy had to be eighteen, attractive and physically fit, though this was not always a guarantee of success. Many fine boys who were brought to the palace were swiftly dispatched back to their villages.

“B-but why?” Margette stuttered. “Why did King Seronisis send for my son?”

The sergeant shrugged, his face remaining expressionless. “I just carry out orders.”

He pushed past Margette and strode into the main room of the cottage. A trio of lesser-ranking troopers shadowed their leader, fanning out to search the other rooms. One pushed into the room where Pan’s sisters were waking up, eliciting screams from the girls and a stern frown from Margette. Another, having found its quarry, unceremoniously shook Pan awake.

“What is it? What’s going on?” Pan asked sleepily.

“You’re coming with us,” said the trooper.

“What’s he talking about?” Pan asked as his mother burst into the room.

“You’ve been chosen for the King’s Harem,” she explained, shooting the trooper a dark look.

Pan looked from his mother to the Hapsid Trooper and then back at his mother.

“And what if I don’t want to go?” he asked as he rubbed the sleep from the corners of his eyes.

The trooper folded his arms as his brow came down and his top lip curled at one corner.

“Oh dear,” Margette said, clasping her hands together. “You have to go, Pan. You can’t refuse such an honour.”

“But I don’t want to leave,” Pan protested. “This is my home, my family. I belong here!”

“I know dear,” said Margette as she hugged her beloved. “But Seronisis is our king and he has chosen you. An opportunity like this will never come again, son. You must go.”